This invention relates to a method and apparatus for playing a game of skill which promotes advertising recognition.
1. Databasexe2x80x94An information source for the storage and retrieval of advertisement segments. When the term is used in conjunction with a computer, it is known as a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) for the storage and retrieval of the advertisement segments in computer memory.
2. Advertisement segmentsxe2x80x94A part, portion or slice of a printed, audio and/or visual advertisement.
3. Published advertisementsxe2x80x94Advertisements which have been presented to the public.
4. Playerxe2x80x94An individual or individuals engaged in playing the game of skill.
5. Sponsor source identificationxe2x80x94Conveyed recognition by a player of the trademark owner, promoter, product or service promoted by the published advertisement.
6. A personal identity information questionxe2x80x94Questions directed to the player pertaining to information, such as age, gender, culture, name, address and credit card information where applicable.
7. Personalized advertisement segment selectionsxe2x80x94Advertisement segments selected with regard to format which is tailored to the player.
8. Player registration questionsxe2x80x94Identity information questions that pertain to registration information, such as name, age and address.
9. Pre-game wagerxe2x80x94Advance payment made by a player for wagering which may be in the form of a credit card payment.
10. Available game format selectionsxe2x80x94Selections for different game types available for play.
11. Skill level selectionsxe2x80x94A level of risk and/or skill for available game format selections to be made by a player.
12. Difficulty selectionsxe2x80x94Selection of the advertisement segments made in proportion to the skill level selected by a player to provide a proportional level of game play difficulty.
13. Game rule playing informationxe2x80x94Information provided to a player as to how the game must be played.
14. Codingxe2x80x94Providing the advertisement segments with identification indicia, either written or electronic, or both.
16. Taggingxe2x80x94Attaching either physical or electronic coding to respective advertisement segments.
17. Multiple bit codexe2x80x94A code made up of a group of number or letter combinations.
18. Identification bitsxe2x80x94Multiple letter and/or number combinations for providing independent code identification of respective advertisement segments.
19. Personal computer (PC)xe2x80x94An individually owned or accessed computer which includes, but is not limited to, a central processing unit (CPU), random access memory (RAM), persistent storage media, and an interface to a telecommunication network.
20. Local storage devicexe2x80x94Random access memory and/or read only memory for a personal computer.
21. Display devicexe2x80x94A video screen for a personal computer.
22. Networkxe2x80x94A telecommunication network and/or the Internet or the global computer network.
23. Host computerxe2x80x94A computer system used by one hosting the game of skill.
24. Storage mediumxe2x80x94A device attached to a computer system which is capable of long-term storage of data. Specifically, the data must persist across power-cycling of the computer system, and through disconnection of the device from the computer system. The device stores or retrieves data as directed by the computer system.
25. Encodedxe2x80x94Transforming information into binary code understandable or transferable by computer.
26. Machine-readable computer program codexe2x80x94Information encoded as defined in the previous definition.
Millions of dollars are spent by sponsors to promote their products or services through print, radio, television and the Internet media or global computer network. However, the public, which has been inundated with these published advertisements, develops tendencies to tune out or not pay attention to such advertising, and in addition, the public is often entertained by the advertisement, but fails to identify the advertisement with a particular source, e.g. trademark, product, service, sponsor.
It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for playing a game of skill which promotes sponsor identification in relationship to published advertisements and which rewards the player with wagering or the like and also provides capability of monetary gain for the host promoting and operating the game of skill.
In the game of skill of the present invention a database of advertisement segments from published advertisements is generated and selections of the advertisement segments are presented to a player for sponsor source identification. The player then makes identifications of the sponsor sources of the respective advertisement segments presented and these player identifications are then evaluated for correctness and the results displayed to the player.
The game is particularly adapted for the Internet and provides a basis for a potentially profitable host Web site, the owner of which may charge fees to respective advertising sponsors in order to assist in the promotion and tracking of their products or services. In addition, the game of skill of the present invention may also include wagering to encourage participation of players.
Many refinements may be conducted in playing the game. Personal identity questions may be first presented to the player and then the personalized advertisement segment selections made for the presentation as based on these responses. Such personal identity information questions may include player registration questions and also include the reception of a pre-game wager from a player.
Different game formats may also be presented to the player for selection and the selection of the presentation of advertisement segments may be made in accordance with these format selections. In addition, the player may also be presented with skill or risk level selections and based on the skill or risk level selections made by the player, the level of difficulty is accordingly made for the selections to be presented to the player of the advertising segments. If wagering is involved, then a winning player is rewarded with money or another type of reward. Game rule playing information is also generally displayed to the player prior to presenting the selections to the player so that the player has full knowledge as to how to play the game prior to engagement.
In order to organize the storage and retrieval of advertisement segments for playing the game, they are coded as by tagging each advertisement segment with a multiple bit code which for example includes identification bits for the sponsor, the year the advertisement was published and the sequence in which the advertisement was published in that particular year.